Quality Attribute Design Primitives and the Attribute Driven Design Method

SEI Report
This paper discusses the understanding of quality attributes and their application to the design of a software architecture.
Publisher

Software Engineering Institute

Abstract

This paper discusses the understanding of quality attributes and their application to the design of a software architecture. The authors present an approach to characterizing quality attributes and capturing architectural patterns that are used to achieve these attributes. For each pattern, it is important not only how the pattern achieves a quality attribute goal but also what impact the pattern has on other attributes. The authors embody this investigation of quality into the Attribute Driven Design Method for designing software architecture.

Cite This SEI Report

Bachmann, F., Bass, L., & Klein, M. (2001, October 1). Quality Attribute Design Primitives and the Attribute Driven Design Method. Retrieved September 12, 2026, from https://www.sei.cmu.edu/library/quality-attribute-design-primitives-and-the-attribute-driven-design-method/.

@techreport{bachmann_2001,
author={Bachmann, Felix and Bass, Len and Klein, Mark},
title={Quality Attribute Design Primitives and the Attribute Driven Design Method},
month={Oct},
year={2001},
institution={Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University},
url={https://www.sei.cmu.edu/library/quality-attribute-design-primitives-and-the-attribute-driven-design-method/},
note={Accessed: 2026-Sep-12}
}

Bachmann, Felix, Len Bass, and Mark Klein. "Quality Attribute Design Primitives and the Attribute Driven Design Method." Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University. Software Engineering Institute, October 1, 2001. https://www.sei.cmu.edu/library/quality-attribute-design-primitives-and-the-attribute-driven-design-method/.

F. Bachmann, L. Bass, and M. Klein, "Quality Attribute Design Primitives and the Attribute Driven Design Method," Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University. Software Engineering Institute, 1-Oct-2001 [Online]. Available: https://www.sei.cmu.edu/library/quality-attribute-design-primitives-and-the-attribute-driven-design-method/. [Accessed: 12-Sep-2026].

Bachmann, Felix, Len Bass, and Mark Klein. "Quality Attribute Design Primitives and the Attribute Driven Design Method." Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Software Engineering Institute, 1 Oct. 2001. https://www.sei.cmu.edu/library/quality-attribute-design-primitives-and-the-attribute-driven-design-method/. Accessed 12 Sep. 2026.

Bachmann, Felix; Bass, Len; & Klein, Mark. Quality Attribute Design Primitives and the Attribute Driven Design Method. Software Engineering Institute. 2001. https://www.sei.cmu.edu/library/quality-attribute-design-primitives-and-the-attribute-driven-design-method/